


Breaking Them

by Wolfcry22



Series: The Exhausted Mind of Poe [4]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Anxiety, Fluff and Angst, Hurt Poe Dameron, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Poe Dameron Has PTSD, Poe Dameron Hurts So Prettily, Poe Dameron Needs A Hug, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Finn, References to Depression, Violence, people suck
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-11
Updated: 2020-02-11
Packaged: 2021-02-28 07:07:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22659838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolfcry22/pseuds/Wolfcry22
Summary: Takes Place directly after Breaking DownAfter Finn hears about what some pilots said to Poe and nearly made him do something drastic, Finn knows that he needs to defend him no matter what it takes.
Relationships: Poe Dameron/Finn
Series: The Exhausted Mind of Poe [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1605424
Kudos: 70





	Breaking Them

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve gotten a few requests to continue the Breaking Down story with Finn beating up the pilots who said those things to Poe. I honestly didn’t even think about doing it, but I realized it would be a very nice continuation. Finn being the perfect boyfriend that I know would defend and honor Poe no matter what. Especially because we know that Poe would do the same for Finn in a second. This one is going to be a little heavy into the angst and violence, but this is exactly what Finn would do after learning that those pilots caused so much pain to Poe.

Finn laid awake for most of the night with Poe sleeping soundly beside him. Restful nights were few and far between thanks to Poe’s vivid flashbacks and Finn knew that he should relish in this sleep while he had it, but he knew that he just couldn’t. His mind was racing to some of the things that Poe had repeated and how Resistance members viewed him. Poe was in a fragile mental state and the fact that people whom he was supposed to lead and care for had nearly pushed him to brink of no return was not okay in Finn’s eyes. In fact, it pissed him off.

Finn glanced down to the slightly snoring Poe as his chest rose and fell with every slow breath. Finn lowered his head and kissed the top of Poe’s head. Poe was so peaceful when he slept and Finn longed for him to find that peace when he was awake too. “They’re going to pay for what they did,” Finn vowed, even though he was sure that Poe couldn’t hear him. “I’m going to fucking end them.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Finn was up the next morning early. In fact, he wasn’t even sure if he had even gotten to sleep. However, he didn’t care. He had been planning what he was going to say and do to the jerks that had spoken so horribly to Poe. His mind had raced through the night and Finn feared that his emotions were going to get the best of him when the time came to confront them. He wasn’t even upset about it. He didn’t care about the consequences. He just needed them to realize what they had done was not okay.

He slightly shifted ever so slowly so that he didn’t disrupt Poe, who had his arms tangled around him as if holding Finn for protection. Finn gingerly pried his arms from his body as he tucked a pillow where he had been so that Poe still had something to cling to. Poe slightly stirred before mumbling in his sleep and quickly began to drift back to sleep.

Finn stepped over Poe as slowly as possible so that he didn’t move the bed. He gingerly stepped onto the cool ground before seeing BB-8 roll quietly up to him. “Make sure that Poe is okay,” Finn instructed sternly. “Don’t leave his side, got it?”

BB-8 let out a proud beep and Finn nodded. “Good droid. I’ll be back.” With that he headed out of the room and into the hallway.

It was early, but people were already bustling around. Some were just getting off of their night shift while others were just getting up to start. Finn couldn’t recall which squadrons were on night patrol or morning patrol. Poe had told him the night before that some of the ringleaders for all the comments were two pilots named Stick and Storm. He had also heard the name Wish, but he thought she was more of a follower and just did whatever the boys said.

While he was pondering that information, he saw one exhausted looking pilot walking through the hallways. He recognized her as Fox. She was kind and quiet and mostly kept to herself. She didn’t join in to hear any gossip and certainly didn’t spread any. She was always around and heard everything. If anyone knew where Stick or Storm was, it would be her.

“Fox, can I ask you a question real quick,” Finn asked as he bounded to her side.

She lifted her tired eyes as she yawned into the back of her hand. “Alright, but please make it quick. I’d like to get some rest before the dusk patrol.”

“Yeah, yeah, of course. This’ll only take a second. I wanted to know if you knew where Stick or Storm might be,” he asked.

Fox nodded slowly. “They’re part of Ebony Squadron, so they should be in the mess hall before they go on a supply mission,” she answered tiredly.

Finn clapped her on the back. “Great! Thanks, Fox! Get some sleep.” He darted forward, leaving the exhausted pilot in his wake. 

He made his way to the mess hall and heard it roaring with laughter. Most Squadrons were getting ready for the day and a fizzled energy hung in the air. Finn didn’t feel the excitement on the air. He could just feel his own tension through his body mingled with rage as he thought about what they had said to Poe. 

Finn made his way in and saw Ebony Squadron sitting at their own table. They were the loudest out of the mess hall and certainly the most reckless too. Poe had been close to them because of that reason and when Finn had first joined the Resistance he had been blown away at how highly Poe spoke of them. The fact that they would turn on him so quickly over something that he couldn’t control made him sick. His hands were tense at his sides and clutched into fists.

“And then I blasted through that asteroid belt with no problems,” Storm boasted as he threw his hands in the air for emphasis.

Finn narrowed his eyes as he strode forward. He grasped the nearest tray to him and clutched it tightly in his hand. He came up behind Storm with the tray in one hand and thrust it down on top of Storm’s head. Storm fell forward almost into his own tray as the mess hall suddenly became quiet.

Storm yowled in pain as he thrust a hand to the top of his hand. He pulled it away and saw crimson blood. He set his jaw as he spun around and darted to his feet. “What the fuck, man,” he complained in rage.

Finn darted forward and picked up Storm by the shirt. He shoved him against the wall while still having his hands clutched against Storm’s shirt. Storm gasped in surprise as Finn snapped his head fiercely against the wall. “Did you say those things to Poe,” he snapped.

“What,” Storm asked as blood stained his teeth from the blow.

Finn didn’t hesitate to slightly pull him away from the wall before Finn thrust him back. “Did you say those things to Poe?! It’s a yes or no question and don’t even think about lying me,” snarled Finn as his blood boiled in his veins. 

Storm looked own to Finn after taking a moment to process exactly what had been asked of him. He managed a tiny grin. “What? That the guy is fucked in the brain and that he’s crazier than a pack of Loth Cats? Yeah, I said it. It’s the truth.”

“Why would you say that,” Finn shouted. 

“Because it’s true! He’s useless right now and the Resistance would be so much better without him,” Storm yowled.

Finn threw him against the ground before leaping on top of him. He aimed punch after punch against his face as he felt Storm’s nose break under him just as two more pilots tackled him to the ground. Finn fell harshly on his shoulder before twisting manically and leaping back to his feet. When he saw that one of the men that had tackled him was Stick, that just made anger burn through him even more.

“Son of a bitch,” Finn seethed as he swung a fist and it collided with Stick’s stomach. Stick was’t large by any means and nearly crumbled when Finn struck him. “Why did you say it? Why did you say those things to Poe?”

Stick’s face twisted in pain as he doubled over. “What do you care,” he panted painfully. 

“Yeah,” added Storm as he struggled to stand. He spat more blood onto the ground as it flowed freely from his broken nose. “What is said between pilots doesn’t concern you. It’s not our fault if Poe is too much of a bitch to handle it.”

“What did you just say,” roared Finn as he set off toward him again.

Before he could strike him, two other pilots came on other side of them. Finn tried to wrench himself from their grasp before he recognized them as Riviera and Spark. Both were pilots apart of the Crimson Squadron and had always been supportive of Poe, even now. Poe often spoke highly of them and they had never spoken an unkind toward to him. That was the only reason that Finn didn’t kick out their legs as soon as he possibly could.

“It’s not worth it, Finn,” Riviera whispered in his ear in an attempt to calm him down.

Finn was well aware that eyes were watching him with heightened curiosity. He knew that he should be embarrassed, but the adrenaline coursing through him was making logical thinking a struggle. “You don’t know what they said to Poe. What it almost made him do,” he hissed through gritted teeth.

“We know,” sympathized Spark with a nod to Riviera. “But, Storm and Stick aren’t worth it. They were born idiots and they’ll die idiots.”

Finn grunted as he gave another feeble attempt to be released as he tried to roll his shoulders. It was in vain. “They need to pay for what they did. I’ll-“

“You’ll what,” interrupted Riviera. His voice was patient and kind, which Finn would’ve expected from him. “Beat them up? Make them never say anything again? I know that you mean well, but this isn’t what Poe would want. He wants you to come back to him in one piece without any injuries. Having you bruised up isn’t going to help his anxiety. He needs you to be with him.”

Spark nodded. “Riviera is right.”

Finn continued to glare at Storm and Stick. They were whispering with Wish, who was fretting over both of them. “Okay,” he grunted.

“Can we trust you not to loose your mind if we let you go,” questioned Spark.

Finn nodded. Riviera and Spark released him gingerly as Finn took a step forward. He pointed a finger to both Storm and Stick with rage still aglow in his eyes. “You stay away from him and keep any of your useless thoughts to yourselves. If I so much as hear your looked at Poe the wrong way, it won’t just be your nose that I break you worthless bastards!”

Storm had the back of his wrist pressed against his nose to stem the bleeding. “You had better watch your back, Finn. Or it won’t just be that bitch of a boyfriend that we will ruin.”

Stick nodded with a smirk on his face. “It’s not like it would be hard. Poe’s better off dead than alive to us right now.”

Finn was about to launch himself forward for another attack when Riviera and Spark both beat him to it. They stood between them with their eyes locked on Storm and Stick. “Get out of here,” Spark ordered with an authority about him. He was one of the older pilots and had seniority over younger fighters like Storm and Stick. “Or I can see about having you grounded. A potentially ruptured appendix from a ill fated punch would be enough to have medical look in on it, don’t you think?” 

Stick set his jaw while Riviera turned to Storm. “You might want to get that broken nose seen to. That way everyone will forever know that you’re useless in a fight.”

“This isn’t over,” hissed Storm under his breath as he flicked his head over his shoulder, urging the rest of his squadron to follow.

Spark’s eyes narrowed to slits as he crossed his arms over his chest. “I think that it is.” He watched the group go before glancing back to Finn. “We’ll settle things here. You should get back to Poe before he notices that you’re gone,” he suggested.

Finn knew that he owed them so much. There was no telling what he could’ve done to Storm or Stick of they hadn’t stepped in. He sighed heavily as he glanced down at his bruised and bloody knuckles. “Thank you. Just, thank you,” he murmured as he turned away from the prying eyes and harsh comments. He knew that they would talk about this later about how unhinged he was and a liability that he had become. Honestly, Finn didn’t care. All he cared about was protecting Poe and making sure they didn’t say anything derogatory about him again. 

He made his way down the hallway before making his way to his and Poe’s room. He opened the door and found Poe kneeling beside BB-8. He looked only slightly less tired than previous nights. Finn could tell by his stance that he was nervous and the fear instantly seemed to fade when he saw Finn approach.

“Finn, thank the force,” exclaimed Poe as he straightened. “BB-8 told me that you left early and appeared angry.” His eyes suddenly widened when he looked to Finn’s fists and saw them bruised and bloody. “What happened? You’re hurt!”

Finn made his way over to Poe. He wrapped him in a sudden, almost constricting embrace. Poe went limp for a moment before hugging Finn back. Finn didn’t release him even when Poe tapped his back in surprise. “Finn, is everything okay? What’s wrong?”

Finn reluctantly pulled away from Poe and looked at him almost fearfully. He lifted his hands up and rested them against Poe’s cheeks, stroking his thumb gingerly over Poe’s soft skin. Poe lifted his own hands to rest them over Finn’s. “You know that I love you, right? And that I would be lost if anything happened to you?”

Poe’s eyes slightly widened. “Of course I know that you love me. I love you too, but you’re scaring me.” He rubbed his own fingers against Finn’s knuckles. “Talk to me.”

Finn reluctantly lowered his hands from Poe’s face. He motioned for him to follow as he headed to their bed. Finn sat down with Poe doing the same. Before Finn could speak, Poe stretched out his hands as he gingerly started to rub at Finn’s knuckles. Finn lightly hissed in pain as Poe looked for his droid. “BB-8, grab the antiseptic wipes and the gauze.”

While BB-8 rolled away, Poe glanced back to Finn. “Tell me what happened, please.” He lifted Finn’s hand to his own lips and planted a gentle kiss on them.

Finn felt his shoulders slump as a sigh left his lips. “I was just thinking about what you told me about what Storm and Stick had said to your yesterday. It just pissed me off! They can’t speak to you like that! So, they’ll certainly think twice before starting up again.”

Poe looked beyond surprised. He still rubbed his finger over Finn’s knuckles, but he was a little firmer. “Finn, you could’ve been hurt, or worse! Storm and Stick are dangerous, especially when it’s two of them verses just you,” he pointed out.

“I know,” muttered Finn as he glanced away from Poe so that he couldn’t see the disappointment in Poe’s eyes. “I wasn’t alone. The mess hall witnessed it.”

Poe jolted, halting the rubbing he was doing of Finn’s knuckles. “The mess hall? A full mess hall?” Finn gave a small nod. Poe lifted a hand and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Finn, what were you thinking? You can’t have the reputation as unhinged leader! That’s my role right now, unfortunately.”

“I know that I shouldn’t have done it. I just couldn’t let them talk to you like that. Poe, you scared me yesterday. I thought that you were going to do something to hurt yourself. I blame them for making you feel that way. They deserve what I did and more,” Finn replied as BB-8 rolled over with the supplies.

Poe reached down and took it from his droid. Poe ripped open one of the wipes and cleaned the blood from Finn’s knuckles. He then wrapped them in gauze before lifting his gaze to look at Finn. “I appreciate it, Finn, I really do. The fact that you’re willing to fight for me makes me love you even more. I just don’t want you to get hurt because of it. Just like you can’t loose me, I can’t loose you.”

Finn nodded. “Them hurting you hurt me. You are the General of the Resistance! You deserve respect, no matter what they think. You scared me, Poe. I know that I keep saying that, but when I came in you were in a horrible state. If I wouldn’t have walked in when I did, would you have done something to hurt yourself? I don’t know. The fact that their words started you down that hole made me angry. I just decided to settle the score.”

Poe shifted over to Finn as Finn lifted his arms and pulled Poe against his chest. “I appreciate it. I really do, but you can’t do that again. I can’t have you become hurt or worse. Storm and Stick can be dangerous when they want to.”

“Okay, but will you tell me if they say anything about you again,” questioned Finn as he almost buried his head into the soft hair on top of Poe’s head.

Poe murmured against Finn’s chest. “I will, as long as you promise not to do anything stupid.”

“I can’t promise, but I’m sure that Riviera and Spark will shoot me down before I do. They kind of got me out of trouble before I could do something I regretted,” Finn confessed.

Poe slightly wriggled out of Finn’s grasp as he looked up to him. It was clear that Poe felt a little better that someone had been watching over Finn. “At least Riviera and Spark were there. I trust them.”

“They told me not to rush into a fight and that I needed to take care of you. That’s how we will get through this.” Finn could imagine both Riviera and Spark standing in their room, nodding encouragingly as he repeated what they had said. He couldn’t help but smile when he thought about it.

“That does sound like Spark.” Poe slightly tipped his head upward as he kissed Finn’s cheek. “And they’re right. We will get through this together. We both need to not listen to what everyone says. They’ll always have something to say about me, about us.”

Finn pivoted his head and lowered it. Poe tipped his head upward and the two kissed softly. “They’re just jealous they don’t get to come home to you every night.”

Poe grinned through the next kiss. “Oh yeah?”

“That’s what I believe,” answered Finn. He then wrapped an arm around Poe’s shoulder and brought him down on the bed. Poe couldn’t help but laugh as he playfully thrust his head against Finn’s shoulder, fitting beside him like a puzzle piece. “And I will continue to fight for you when you can’t fight for yourself. Noe one talks bad of Poe Dameron or they’re going to have to deal with me.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to everyone who left comments and followed this story and verse. It was incredibly therapeutic for me to write and I know that many of you that are reading this feel the same way. I hope that you all enjoyed it!


End file.
